| 1. |
- Chan, Elton, 1988
(författare)
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Government-driven commodification of public space: The case of Kwun Tong Promenade, Hong Kong
- 2023
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Ingår i: Cities. - : Elsevier BV. - 0264-2751. ; 134
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper argues that the Kwun Tong Promenade in Hong Kong is an exemplary case of government-driven commodification of public space. The waterfront public space was an integral part of the government's plan to redevelop the former industrial center into a new premier business district. Through document analysis, site observations and interviews, this paper seeks to examine how the government has driven commodification of the Promenade and to illustrate how the process was manifested both socially and spatially. It is clear from the findings that the Kwun Tong Promenade was developed and managed by the government primarily to attract investment and drive growth in the area, and, as a result, the voices and needs of the local communities were largely neglected. In addition to the decline in publicness of the public space, the government-driven commodification of the Promenade also led to the exacerbation of uneven development across the rapidly transforming district. By examining the commodification of the Kwun Tong Promenade and highlighting its link to spatial injustice, this paper represents a call for more critical attention to government-driven public spaces as public space developments become increasingly complex and contested in different social, economic, and political contexts.
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| 2. |
- Chan, Elton, 1988
(författare)
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Public space as commodity: social production of the Hong Kong waterfront
- 2020
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Ingår i: Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers: Urban Design and Planning. - : Thomas Telford Ltd.. - 1755-0807 .- 1755-0793. ; 173:4, s. 146-155
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although there has been a long tradition of public space-related land speculation and development, the recent success of the High Line in New York has highlighted the transformative effect carefully designed and curated public spaces can have on the local economy. By prioritising exchange value over use value, governments and developers are exploiting the production of public spaces as a means for financial, political and other forms of returns. This paper argues that commodification of public space both transcends and encompasses other processes such as privatisation and commercialisation, and it is essential to study how it is manifested in different urban contexts. This paper sets out to examine how commodification of public space has taken form in Hong Kong, a global city where public spaces have mostly been an afterthought and box-checking exercise in the planning process. By reflecting on the social production of three recently completed waterfront public spaces across the city, this paper suggests that even though the commodification of public space has taken on very different forms in Hong Kong, the public spaces in question all display certain characteristics and features that can be attributed to the decline of publicness and inclusivity in public space.
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| 3. |
- Chan, Elton, 1988
(författare)
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Take back our city: reclaiming shopping malls in Hong Kong
- 2023
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Ingår i: City. - 1470-3629 .- 1360-4813. ; 27:5-6, s. 778-794
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Shopping malls have replaced traditional public spaces and become an integral part of urban life in many cities. This paper seeks to explore the role of shopping malls as protest sites in Hong Kong during the Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill protest movement in 2019. As the protests decentralised and filtered throughout the city, shopping malls became sites of protest and battlegrounds between riot police and protesters. In addition to singing and chanting, organising sit-ins, and exhibiting protest art inside shopping malls, protesters also confronted mall employees as well as disrupted businesses. Based on information gathered through media reports, planning and policy documents, as well as ethnographic observations, this paper aims to examine the role of shopping malls in the urban development of Hong Kong, their function as public spaces during the protest movement, and how the politicisation of shopping malls shaped and sustained the protest movement. This paper contends that the protesters’ appropriation of shopping malls not only represented an important first step of reclaiming the right to the city, but also exemplified how such struggle and resistance can be extended beyond traditional protest sites and into different everyday spaces.
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